“Every book that has ever been done at Northwest, if you’ll go look at it you’ll find the fingerprints, the thumbprints, of everyone on this podcast,” yearbook adviser Susan Massy shared early on in the latest episode of the Ask Mike podcast, explaining the importance of having a yearbook family.  In this episode, host Mike Taylor talks to five of the yearbook advisers who made the top 10 of the National Scholastic Press Association&apos;s Pacemaker 100 list. In first place in the Pacemaker Top 10 is the Lair yearbook program at Shawnee Mission Northwest High School in Shawnee, Kansas. Susan Massy has been the adviser for the last 36 yearbooks. In the program’s history, they have won an impressive total of 23 Pacemakers and three Pacemaker finalists.Jim Jordan was the adviser behind 35 volumes of the Decamhian yearbook at Del Campo High School in Fair Oaks, California. The Fair Oaks yearbook program was named second, with 20 Pacemakers and seven Pacemaker finalists. Crystal Kazmierski retired from her position as the adviser of Wings at Arrowhead Christian Academy in Redlands, California, after the 2017 school year. Their yearbook program placed third, with 22 Pacemakers and two Pacemaker finalists. Becky Tate, CJE, is the yearbook adviser at Shawnee Mission North High School in Overland Park, Kansas. Their program came in fourth in the Pacemaker Top 10, with a total win of 18 Pacemakers and four Pacemaker finalists.Dow Tate is the current adviser of the Hauberk yearbook at Shawnee Mission East High School in Prairie Village, Kansas. Their program tied for ninth with 15 Pacemakers and five Pacemaker finalists. 

Ask Mike

What Happens when Five of NSPA’s Top 10 Pacemaker Winners Sit Down to Talk?

In this extra special episode, Ask Mike and Yearbook Chat with Jim team up to talk about promoting your yearbook! Hosts Mike Taylor, CJE, and Jim Jordan are joined by three members of the Walsworth marketing team, Jenica Hallman, CJE, Jimmy Gilligan and Sarah Scott. They share tips for writing press releases, ideas for promoting your yearbook, and why you want to promote your 2021 yearbook more than ever before!Listen to the episode, then share your marketing with us! Send press releases to mike.taylor@walsworth.com or jim.jordan@walsworth.com, and be sure to tag Walsworth Yearbooks in any social media promotions you post. We would love to share your work. Find us on Instagram  @walsworthyearbooks, Twitter @yearbookforever, and Facebook. 

How Can I Promote Myself?

In honor of Scholastic Journalism Week and the importance of diversity and inclusion in scholastic journalism, host Mike Taylor, CJE, has a very special episode today! Listen in to hear Mike talk with June Straight, from El Paso, Texas, and Dennis Wade, from Ohio, about diversity and inclusion. This episode is tough, but important for yearbook staffs to listen to. As a bonus, when yearbooks become more inclusive, they often see a boost in sales! 

How Do I Make a Diverse, Inclusive Yearbook?

How did are they doing it? All over the country, yearbook staffs are stepping up and making amazing yearbooks in the middle of a pandemic that has displaced almost everything about the school year. The yearbook program at Indian Trail High School in Kenosha, Wisconsin, is one of those who is making the most of their incredible year. Listen in to hear host Mike Taylor, CJE, chat with adviser Michelle Corbett, staff member Kalea Lamphier, and Walsworth sales rep Erin Grunnet about how they’re working to make the best book their yearbook program has ever done. Listen to this special New Year’s Eve episode as we all transition our yearbook coverage from 2020 to 2021! And be sure to stick around to hear the story about how Kalea interviewed iconic journalist Deborah Roberts for her first ever story. 

How Do I Take My Yearbook Above and Beyond in 2021?

In this episode, host Mike Taylor speaks with two schools in the northeast part of the country, one from New Hampshire and one from Pennsylvania. The adviser and Editor-in-chief from St, Thomas Aquinas in Dover, New Hampshire, share how they&apos;re using this opportunity to make a yearbook different from anything they&apos;ve done before. Two editors from Eastern Lebanon County High School in Pennsylvania share how they&apos;re organizing and getting the book done, even though they aren&apos;t in the building together. 

How Do I Make a Yearbook During COVID-19?

Host Mike Taylor, CJE, begins the new season by interviewing two editors-in-chief as they start their new year. As you may have guessed from the episode title, one resides on the east coast and the other on the west coast. Neri Verniani, from Oviedo High School in Oviedo, Florida, and David Dablo from El Camino Real Charter School in Los Angeles, California, share how they're guiding their yearbook staff to create the 2021 yearbook under extraordinary conditions. 

The East Coast/West Coast Slide

Think back to early March. It may seem a lifetime ago, though in reality it was only a couple of weeks. School was still in session. There was no quarantine. No one thought to wear facemasks, and toilet paper could be easily found on the well-stocked shelves of your nearest supermarket. It was during this time that Mike Taylor, CJE, went to visit our Level Up winner, Meridian High School, for their first in-person visit on a cold Thursday afternoon.

Level Up Update: Visiting Meridian High School

Happy Valentine’s Day! This is the time of year when the Walsworth Yearbooks Podcast Network celebrates love in all its forms – especially the love of yearbook! In this episode, host Mike Taylor, CJE, interviewed four yearbook staffs about why they love yearbook. He spoke to the staffs of Braden River High School in Bradenton, Florida; Liberty North High School in Liberty, Missouri; Kearney High School in Kearney, Missouri; and Lee’s Summit High School in Lee’s Summit, Missouri.

Why Do You Love Yearbook?

Some of the work being done by middle school and junior high yearbook staffs is absolutely amazing. That’s why host Mike Taylor sat down with the yearbook staffs of Carl Albert Middle School and Cactus Canyon Junior High to discuss what they’re doing right, what they’re working on, and what will happen when they move on to high school.

What are some cool things middle school yearbooks are doing?

When the yearbook editors of Colonial Forge High School in Stafford, Virginia, attended an Elite Weekend at the beginning of the year, their stress was evident to Mike Taylor. Now, several months later, they've come a long way. Mike sat down with adviser Tiffany Kopcak and two editors to discuss how they reached their "Aha!" moment. 

How to I Reach the "Aha!" Moment? An Interview with Colonial Forge

Mitchell Franz, of Yoakum, Texas, is a photographer. He started out as a scholastic journalism student and now, at 29 years old, he makes his living from his photography. In this episode, Mitchell and host Mike Taylor discuss the ways yearbook staffs can make their photography better. Plus, they challenge photographers to take great academic photos. Listen to the episode for details on how to win a $50 gift card from Mike and Mitchell.

How can I Improve my Yearbook Photography?

A great story starts with a great interview. In this episode, host Mike Taylor, CJE, interviews the staffs of Seminole High School, Gainesville High School, Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and Eastern Lebanon County High School about creating great stories and great spreads. They shared their advice for getting great stories into the yearbook – from checking in with writers to the basics of a good interview. They talk about writing stories about the whole school, the benefit of being nosy, and teaching newbies to write stories that matter.

How do I stop my staff from writing bad stories?

In this special WYPN crossover episode, host Mike Taylor teams up with Jim Jordan, of Yearbook Chat with Jim, to talk about leveling up your yearbook! They bring in yearbook experts do discuss the possibilities and ways yearbook staffs can make improvements. They also speak to advisers and staffs about the ways they want to Level Up their yearbooks for 2020!   Get some help achieving your goals. Enter the Walsworth Yearbooks Level Up contest at walsworthyearbooks.com/level-up and you could win a visit from Mike and Jim!

How can I level up my yearbook?

Creating a yearbook is fun, but most staffs can&apos;t accomplish that without the funds raised from sales!   In this episode, host Mike Taylor speaks to students at several different schools about how they sell and market their yearbooks.    Find Ask Mike on Twitter, @yrbkmiketaylor and don&apos;t forget to use #AskMike. 

Always be Selling

Host Mike Taylor spends a lot of time traveling from yearbook workshop to yearbook workshop all over the United States. At two recent workshops, one in California and one in Florida, he was especially impressed with the editors at Saugus High School and Freedom High School. So he interviewed them! These students already have impressive yearbook careers. They shared their experiences and their expectations for their 2020 yearbook. 

The Bicoastal Episode

Need to sharpen your yearbook skills? Ask Mike! In season one of this podcast from the Walsworth Yearbooks Podcast Network (WYPN), Mike Taylor explores what it takes to tell a great story with your yearbook, with a few laughs along the way. Mike enhances his already immense yearbook knowledge through interviews with yearbook advisers across the country, and helps advisers and staffs create their amazing yearbooks. Do you have a burning yearbook question you’d like to ask Mike? Send it to podcasts@walsworth.com.

hubhopper

Ask Mike

hubhopper